VENDOR SPOTLIGHT

SATO's Prestige Partner Program provides a framework of business for growth and profit with SATO America products, services, and solutions. The program is a tiered solution for the complexities of business today, yet will afford your company a wider range of product and solution availability than most other industry programs.

DATA COLLECTION PODCASTS

Paul Constantine, president of ScanSource POS and Barcode North America, and Jim Roddy, president of Business Solutions discussed topics including enhancing the customer experience, the opportunity EMV presents to VARs, and transitioning to managed services at the ScanSource Worldwide Partner Conference for POS and Barcoding, March 16-18.

Mike Burns, president of ScanSource Services Group, met with Business Solutions president Jim Roddy at the ScanSource Worldwide Partner Conference for POS and Barcoding, March 16-18, to explain how the group works with ScanSource partners to complement their businesses.

One of the chief lessons I’ve learned from smart channel executives the past 15 years is this: sometimes you need to stop working on the day-to-day of your business and get educated on the most important trends that could affect your business.

DATA COLLECTION VIDEOS

Sam Wyche was the keynote speaker at the ScanSource Worldwide Partner Conference for POS and Barcoding, March 16-18 in Greenville, SC. Wyche, former head coach of the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals (1984-91) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1992-95).

Brad Barnes, sales manager of specialized channels for Plantronics, displays USB-based, wireless, and Bluetooth headsets at the Smart VAR Healthcare Summit, powered by ScanSource and Business Solutions magazine on August 21, 2014, at the Westin Chicago Northwest.

Nicholas Doss, channel sales manager, explains the application’s the company’s BarTender software has for healthcare at the Smart VAR Healthcare Summit, powered by ScanSource and Business Solutions magazine on August 21, 2014, at the Westin Chicago Northwest.

In the ultimate move toward self-leadership in the workplace, Zappos (among others) recently announced they were eliminating managers in an effort to keep things less corporate. In a movement called holacracy, teams are expected to know what needs to get done and do it, focusing on the relationships rather than the individual to meet objectives.

One of the areas I spend considerable time on is helping business owners prepare for and then complete an exit from the business they often founded and have worked in for decades. Let’s get one thing straight: It is a big deal for an entrepreneurial owner to exit his or her business. In fact, it is a very big deal. The saddest call I receive comes from a small business owner that has worked in their company for decades. It was their creation, and they have poured sweat and blood into building it to where it is today.

It seems you can’t read any technology-related news these days without hearing about the potential of the Internet of Things to revolutionize the way we engage with the world. The reason? It’s a really big deal! The IoT promises to be the most disruptive technological advance since … well …. the Internet.

The most important leadership lessons come from the least likely scenarios. I’ve found this to be true throughout my career as an entrepreneur and executive, and it’s part of the reason I’ll spend a few weeks this summer driving thousands of miles across Europe in a tiny car I rescued from the scrap heap.